BATON ROUGE, Louisiana – Based in the capital of Louisiana, complete audio systems integrator Premier Production & Sound Services, LLC (PSS) is known for its dedication to providing the best audio designs to a wide variety of venues and events including festivals, concerts, university functions and corporate conferences. A major factor contributing to the company’s success is its use of HARMAN’s JBL, Crown and Soundcraft equipment, generating integrated solutions that are impressive in quality and consistency.

To deliver a full turnkey audio system at the limited 325-seat Manship Theater for the Manship Red Carpet Gala Fundraiser featuring GRAMMY®-winning Rick Springfield, PSS stacked three JBL VTX V25 line array loudspeakers per side from the ground up, on top of three VTX S28 subwoofers in cardioid configuration and a VTX V25-VT vertical transporter per side, with four VERTEC® VT4886 subcompact line array loudspeakers serving as front fills. Also, four VT4886 loudspeakers on top of three VT4883 subcompact subwoofers per side in cardioid configuration served as side fills, supported by two VT4883 subs with four VT4886 for drum fill and 16 SRX712M stage monitors. The entire system was powered by 36 Crown I-Tech 12000HD and nine I-Tech 4x3500HD amplifiers, and mixed with a Soundcraft Vi6 digital console.

Knowing the sound needed to reach three different levels of the theater, Brian Gordon, co-owner and head audio engineer of PSS Sound, said, “Due to building constraints, we were unable to suspend the VTX line arrays, but thanks to the versatility of the VTX series, we were able to get coverage for the entire room with such little gear. After calculating for vertical dispersion, the front fills were enough to cover half of the first level, with the three VTX V25 loudspeakers covering the rest of the house. We are pleased that the ground-stacked configuration gave us the vertical coverage and sound quality that the artist demanded.”

In addition, the Our Lady Of the Lake Foundation held its 29th Annual Gala at the Baton Rouge River Center, hosting a show for the regional Our Lady of the Lake hospital, starring the blue-eyed soul staple, Hall and Oates. PSS came through with eight JBL VTX V25 and four VT4886 downfill enclosures and six S28 subwoofers in a cardioid configuration per side, supported by four VERTEC VT4888 midsize line array loudspeakers and four VT4886 downfill per side for out fill and four VT4886 loudspeakers for front fill. The system was again powered by 36 I-Tech 12000HD and nine I-Tech 4x3500HD amplifiers, while the Soundcraft Vi6 served as the master control console.

“We wanted to run all the signals through the Vi6 before they hit the PA system, to avoid compromising on sound quality and to have control of the Gala function before the band took the stage,” said Bryant, co-owner and Director of Operations. “The cardioid configuration of the JBL loudspeakers was vital for this particular show, because it eliminated the low-end frequencies that the artist was very sensitive to.”

Lastly, the Groovin’ on the Grounds concert at Louisiana State University allowed PSS to showcase its ability to put out a tremendous amount of power through its JBL system, which included 12 VTX V25 loudspeakers per side and nine S28 subwoofers per side, with eight VT4886 loudspeakers as down fills. All units were flown, except for four VT4886 loudspeakers and six SRX728 subwoofers on the ground functioning as front fills.

All 39 Crown I-Tech 12000HD and 15 I-Tech 4x3500HD amplifiers were used to power the system, while the Soundcraft Vi6 console was used for FOH and monitors. For all three shows, JBL HiQnet Performance Manager™ and HARMAN HiQnet Audio Architect™ were used to design and adjust the system configurations.

“With Crown amplifiers we have been very happy with the rock solid stability of the I-Tech HDs. The improved filters and V5 presets have made the combination unstoppable and we have been equally impressed with the newer 4x3500HD amplifiers which allow us to greatly diversify amp racks to do many different configurations,” added Bryant.

“When using the software, we started with the V5 presets and moved forward with further tweaks based on the room and venue. This allowed us to be flexible in our design, even though the concert moved from the originally planned outdoor environment into an arena setting,” said Bryant. “The technological leap that the JBL D2 drivers made for high end clarity allowed us to deliver clear sound at these high powered venues, without distortion or feedback.”

“Thanks to our integrated HARMAN systems, we were able to provide consistent high-quality audio for all three shows,” Bryant concluded. “We have also recently purchased more V25, G28, V20, S25 and F18S loudspeakers to augment and upgrade our existing inventory.”